Monday Medley

Published: March 24, 2014;Last modified: March 24, 2014 05:00AM

WILD ABOUT HARRY

Today is master magician Harry Houdini’s birth anniversary (1874-1926, born Erik Weisz in Budapest, Hungary). In honor of the quintessential escape artist, here’s a trivia question: Do you know who played him in the classic 1953 movie “Houdini”?

A. Tony Curtis

B. Tony Perkins

C. Tony Randall

D. Tony Dow

E. Tony Lama

The correct answer is A.

SHELL GAME

Crack open “America’s own nut” on Tuesday. It’s Pecan Day, in honor of the nut that is native to North America and was first cultivated by Native Americans long before the Euro-explorers “discovered” this continent. Why do we salute pecans on March 25? It’s the anniversary of George Washington’s planting of pecan trees at Mount Vernon in 1775; the trees, some of which still survive today, were gifts from Thomas Jefferson. Today’s fun fact comes from the Georgia Pecan Commission: It would take 11,624 pecans, stacked end to end, to reach the top of the Empire State Building. Which, of course, would be a waste of pecans. And glue.

HAPPY DAYS

You’re on your own Wednesday: It’s Make Up Your Own Holiday Day. Note: All You Imbeciles Stop Texting While Driving Day is already taken.

LET THERE

BE DARK

Would the last person to leave the planet please turn off the lights? Thanks. We can all start practicing on Saturday during Earth Hour, an event that organizers claim will involve more than 1 billion people in 4,000 cities around the world. Here’s the deal: At 8:30 p.m. local time, everyone is asked to turn off all lights for one hour, thereby sending a global message that we care enough about climate change to take action. Don’t forget to buy candles.

DO THE WAVE

Sunday kicks off National Week of the Ocean. Here are some observations to help foster appreciation for the water planet’s main ingredient:

“There’s nothing wrong with enjoying looking at the surface of the ocean itself, except that when you finally see what goes on underwater,you realize that you’ve been missing the whole point of the ocean. Staying on the surface all the time is like going to the circus and staring at the outside of the tent.” — Dave Barry

“I couldn’t imagine living in a state that didn’t reach the ocean. It was a giant reset button. You could go to the edge of the land and see infinity and feel renewed.” — Avery Sawyer

“Whenever I look at the ocean, I always want to talk to people, but when I’m talking to people, I always want to look at the ocean.” — Haruki Murakami

Today — Peyton Manning (38)

Tuesday — Elton John (67)

Wednesday — Catherine Keener (54)

Thursday — Fergie (39)

Friday — Lady Gaga (28)

Saturday — Eric Idle (71)

Sunday — Eric Clapton (69)

Compiled by Scott Smith from Chase’s 2014 Calendar of Events and other sources.